Red blemishes: Port wine stains

reduce the appearance of port wine stains

Our clinic has pioneered the treatment of port wine stains and birth marks since the 1980s and we’re constantly researching how we can improve treatment even further. You can trust both the high quality of our state-of-the-art lasers and the care of our specialist consultants and nurses in reducing the appearance of your blemishes safely and effectively. Please book your free consultation below to find out how laser treatment can help you.

Is this the right treatment for me?

Laser treatment is suitable for almost anyone but isn’t advisable when your skin is tanned. We can certainly treat you if your skin is naturally dark. During your free consultation, we’ll discuss the options and estimate how much it will cost. If we don’t believe you can get the results you’d like, we’ll tell you immediately.

How many treatments will I need?

PWS naturally progress with age, becoming thicker, darker and developing bleeding spots and cobblestone textures. Laser treatment not only stops this happening, but fades the PWS in most cases. We usually see a good reduction in 6 to 8 treatments but some people will need to continue their treatment indefinitely.

What happens during treatment?

Your consultant will meet with you, then a specialist nurse will guide you through each stage of the treatment. We may begin with different small test patches of different laser settings to see which gives the best results and take photos to monitor your progress.

How does it feel?

Most people describe the feeling of the laser on the skin as like being flicked by an elastic band or a small pin prick. We use an air cooling system to make it more comfortable and anaesthetic cream if needed. As we are part of the NHS, a local anaesthetic injection or general anaesthetic may be arranged if necessary.

How does it work?

Laser light targets only the swollen blood vessels which consititute the PWS, leaving the unaffected, finer vessels behind. This reduces the colour of the PWS and stops bleeding points from forming.

What happens afterwards?

The treated area will show dark circular bruises, 7–10 millimetres in diameter, which fade in 1–2 weeks. The appearance of the treated area may continue to improve over the following 3–4 months. But don’t worry, we’ll explain all this and your aftercare at your free consultation.

Prices

Initial consultation

Free

Test Patch

£100

5 minutes

£140

10 minutes

£220

15 minutes

£280

Book your free consultation

With every treatment you have, you'll be helping someone else too—100% of the proceeds go back into the NHS.